A New Start
by darms8man
Summary: After entering his third year, things are the same and different for Hikigaya Hachiman. He goes to school. He goes to club, where he reads, and leaves to go home at 4:30. It was the same life, as much as it was all he could do for himself. However one can't really expect anything but change, when you are forced to make a deal with the likes of Yukinoshita Haruno.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: When I wrote down the first line for this story, The very first, it was meant to be a chapter for A Different Circumstance. It led me to this creation, my first for the golden pairing of Hikigaya and Haruno.**

 **And we're back. For now. Happy New Years Everybody. I came up with a new story idea because I felt inspired to do so. Let me know what you think of this, my first time doing a Haruno fic. I have a rough plan actually set out this time, and this is gonna be an amazing slow ride, I feel. I hope you enjoy.**

 **Story Start!**

* * *

 **Hachiman First Person POV**

Have I ever narrated the story of how I believe youth is a lie? I probably have, countless times, believing and acknowledging the 'between the lines' that is overlooked by everyday students that are looking to preserve an ounce of their 'friendship'. I myself found myself in a position where me, and what I had closest to friends decided to keep everything between the lines. We reached a pitiful point where nothing serious was ever acknowledged. We left it, we chose to bask in a shame of awkwardness rather than face what had put us in such a position. After all the thinking I did, I eventually stopped looking for that beautiful lie of 'genuine'. Perhaps there was something strong, a bond or relationship that could, with a slim chance, emulate what was genuine, but nothing in your relationships would truly ever be able to _be_ 'genuine'.

After all, such a thing doesn't exist. Even if it did, it sure as hell wouldn't be found in high school.

I was reading my light novel as usual as it can be, at the usual time of the school day when I did so, as it had been for the last year and a half of my life. My phone buzzed while I was in the clubroom. The other occupant's stares were drawn to the sound for a second, before smiling at me and going back to their own stuff. I checked the messenger ID promptly.

Yukinoshita Haruno. A name that was once able to send shivers down my spine, leaving me fearing for my sanity soon after. A woman to which Yukinoshita Yukino stood with disdain and possibly hate, where Hayama Hayato stood with respect and affection, I, Hikigaya Hachiman, stood with fear throughout my second year of high school.

After all, those two blundering idiots, or at least when they were children, all those years ago, could hardly fathom what she was capable of. With a knack for bursting through and knowing everyone's business, erasing the boundaries towards getting whatever she wanted with her… Womanly… Charms, and deceitful smile. After all these years, there has been nothing but a room for growth. She grew even more sly, more smart, if it were ever possible. If there were anyone on earth who could compete, battle, or even surpass my own skill imbedded in my head for all those things, it would be Yukinoshita Haruno. The girl who had been blessed, and would be granted everything.

Of course, except for the one thing she really wanted. I questioned it myself to this day. The way she was now… She had the potential to burn everyone who made her who she is to the ground. Political Party heads. Relatives. Her mother. Ah, wouldn't that be a wonderful thing to see? Yukinoshita daughter snipes her way into her family's political status, with almost unattainable power.

So why now, of all times, when I should possibly be fearing her more than anything, I find myself standing strong, with nothing short of pride while facing her? Maybe I've just gotten cocky. I put too much faith in my ability even knowing full well I have only ever once in my life successfully managed to be in charge of a conversation with Haruno.

Perhaps it had to do with the events of my third year of high school. So much had happened, oh so much. All explained in due time I suppose. However I think this newfound confidence- or should I say _overconfidence,_ was possibly influenced by my anger… of the official dismissal letter I received.

The one warranting my dismissal from the Service Club. The one requested and signed by Yukinoshita Yukino by majority vote, backed by Yuigahama Yui, which was reluctantly approved by our club advisor Hiratsuka-sensei, upon my request. How ironic, that even in an effort to kick me out using her own intellect I still had to lead her into this solution. She still had that smug, 'I win' smile on her face as I went to that disgusting clubroom one last time, to sign that paper and take my application to Hiratsuka-sensei. I couldn't help but notice of course…

My Pan-san cup was already in the trash.

I left that day with a smile on my face as well. That was the day I accepted that I felt nothing for either of those two. That all the time I spent in that room, opening up and making relations was for nothing in the end. After that day, all that remained was the _Monster of Logic._

Ah, but I did mention I was in a clubroom, was I not? Yes, that is true. I joined the Literature Club at Sobu two weeks later, upon repeated request from Hiratsuka-sensei, who genuinely asked, no fists included. As usual, the group was small. We did have more members but not more than six or seven of them showed up each and every day. They were friendly enough, not only out of pity of what happened to me. Everyone knew, after all. It was refreshing to have a normal conversation whether it be about novels or manga, or about my musings on social life that everyone here loved for some reason. Well, refreshing without being insulted at every corner by a cold woman with the tongue of a snake. My vision went dizzy from the sheer anger those memories brought me.

* * *

After I read the message, asking me for a time and place to meet sometime in the rest of the week, I starred the message, and pocketed the phone. I'll decide on what to do with that later.

"Who was that Hikigaya-kun?" asked a kind and soft-spoken voice close by. My eyes visibly softened, trying not to look deranged as I just did when recalling the last few months.

"It was Haruno-san, asking to meet." I tell her. I do owe her enough to tell the truth at least.

"What is it about…?" She asks out of concern.

"I'm sure it'll be fine. She's either looking for real talk or she's just bored. It doesn't matter which one." I reply back at the girl.

"Alright, I'll hold you to those words! Of Course, you know you can ask your reliable senpai for dating advice." She giggled before going back to her book.

"Right, right. Thanks, Senpai." I say with a hint of a smile on my face. Shiromeguri-senpai. I guess she never changes. Even after leaving months ago to Chiba University, she still comes here once a week to her old club, and she's still welcomed by all, remaining the face of the club. It was upon her request that I decided to accept Hiratsuka-sensei's offer of joining, since it was senpai's request in the first place. She wanted someone she knew would be capable of leading the club for this year. The Literature club really didn't need a figurehead like that day to day, but she said the club finds itself struggling when dealing with administrative duties and planning for events and such.

Well, whatever. I never really had much to do anyway, and I couldn't really deny her request. Looking at the clock now that my phone was on, I realized it was nearing 4:30. Time to leave. I get up and pack my belongings into my bag, here being my novel and iPod.

"Leaving, Hikigaya-senpai?" Ah, that still felt weird to hear. It came from one of the second year students sitting across from me, her name was Yoshino Miyabi.

"Hm." I just grunted in response.

"Eh…. Senpai's so popular, huh? First Shiromeguri-senpai, and now going out to meet another girl sometime very soon." She says with a smile on her face.

"I'm not even gonna bother correcting you, I'm too tired for this." I say with a sigh. It still surprising how quickly this club welcomed me in, despite my reputation. If only my middle school 'friends' could look at me now. Huh?! You see this you Riajuu wanna-be bastards?!

Ahem.

"Senpai must remain loyal. After all, you'll be with Shiromeguri-senpai again soon, right?" Yoshino continued.

"Ah, that reminds me, Hikigaya-kun, what happened with Chiba University? Your Scholarship?" asked the oldest senpai in the room.

"Almost guaranteed. On the 1% they refuse the full trip, I'll be admitted anyway with some coverage." I said. I had just recently received the results of my scholarship application test. They were impressed.

"That's wonderful!" says Shiromeguri-senpai with nothing short of a breathtaking smile on her face. I've tried not to fall in love with that smile. I almost fail every time.

"Huh, that's really good news senpai!" said Yoshino as well.

"Can we discuss this later? Come on, let me go home for now. It's 4:30." I said, getting up for real this time.

"It's 4:15, senpai." came another voice in the corner. Damn second years will be the death of me.

"I was rounding up." I said, causing a smile and small laugh among some of my clubmates. They all muttered their pleasantries and I soon left the clubroom, throwing out the rest of my tea and placing the cup in the sink. One plus about the Literature Club was the perks we get for being a larger group. Oh, and of course, a larger clubroom located elsewhere that conveniently helps me avoid the Service Club room in general. I know it may seem like I'm running away from some problem, or conflict, but this goes deeper than that. The more I stay away, it's better for me in every way. I don't want to get involved in this war Yukinoshita is waging.

* * *

I switched mainly into autopilot after that. Stopped by the vending machine, got myself the one drink I always consume, and headed to the front gate and waited at where once my bike used to be parked, waiting for Komachi. Once again, my phone buzzed. I figured as much.

 _Onii-chan, I'll be going out with some friends to karaoke today! Please get yourself back home in one piece. Ah- That got me a lot of-_

I stopped reading the message at that point, knowing what followed. I expected as much from her. It was a Friday. Wait… That means I have to meet with Haruno either tomorrow or on Sunday. Did she just trick me into a sense of having time? Ah shit, looks like I am getting somewhat sloppy.

Seriously though Komachi, with all that riajuu crap you do on a weekly basis, how did you even manage to get into Sobu? Though I guess the same could be questioned about any of the girls here. Sobu High was a private school after all. There were a decent amount of cases where students left in the second year to go to a less demanding public school, even last year. In the end, our school was adamant on the results it outputted. A private school or university may always seem to have a high grade percentage among students, but that's because the lesser scorers are filtered out from ever taking the exams in the first place.

While in my musings about the school system, I had already began walking towards the train station that would take me home. Overall it took about 10 minutes longer to take a train than just walking, but it sure as hell saved me the effort. I was in a daze, autopilot, as I mentioned, so I was startled when my phone began to ring. I recovered. I had half an idea of who it might have been, and my suspicions had been confirmed.

"Haruno." I answered. I knew that she would call eventually after thirty minutes of her text being ignored.

"Ah, already straight to the point of ditching honorifics? Yahall-" started the voice on the other end.

"Stop! Just… stop." I didn't need to be reminded of that… fucki-… repulsive greeting. She seemed to have gotten my point.

"Very well. Have it your way. Good evening, Hikigaya-kun." This was the smooth, vixen voice of one Yukinoshita Haruno. It could easily turn most men into a wistful bliss at the very sound of it.

Unfortunately, I was not most men.

"I know why you're calling. I was in club. I marked your message, I was going to reply in due time." I said. All the talk, all the games she liked to play could be played in person. I didn't want to do this now.

"I thought as much, you aren't one for avoiding me anymore, I suppose. But of course, the issue at hand is we really do not have that due-time you were telling me about. The meeting needs to be tomorrow. I have less time than I anticipated." Lies. She wanted to meet tomorrow in the first place.

"Or at least, that's the excuse I know you're not going to buy." She finished. I could almost feel the smile on her face over that phone line. Just… Just how good has she come to know me? I was about to reply but I was interrupted before I could speak.

"Of course, that can wait for a brief second. Do tell me about that 'club' you just mentioned." she asked, awaiting my reply. Great. I let even more shit slip through to her. I sighed, tired with my life over these last few months.

"The Literature Club. I was requested to join the Literature Club two weeks after I left the Service Club. I'm there to read, and I'm essentially there as the figurehead and representative for school events and activities until later this year." I could even feel the taste in my mouth go to shite after even mentioning that hell-hole. Service Club? Greater hypocrisy isn't known to man.

"Hm, well it's good to hear your life is taking order. Meguri-san talks a lot about you." Of course she already knew. I even chuckled.

"Never a step behind, are we Haruno?" I say. After everything that has changed, I never thought I'd ever find myself relieved that Haruno hadn't.

"No. I'm not. And right now… Neither should you be." Her voice was still comparatively playful, but I knew her well enough to know when she wanted to be serious. I still didn't know what she meant.

"…Life just can't be simple can it? Fine. Six o'clock. The usual Café." My voice was drained from any life it had before. Back to what it always was, or has been lately. Am I depressed? I'm not too sure if that answer is a 'no' anymore.

"Heh… I look forward to it. It'll just be you and your beloved beautiful Onee-san, Hikigaya-kun." She said with a seductively sweet tone, giggling throughout to accentuate that scary feeling.

"Who knows? Perhaps that just fits into one of your deepest fantasies. To be straddled by your Onee-san as she takes your lips forcibly and-" she was cut off by me.

"As if I'd ever let you be dominant." I reply back straightly. Thank the gods I didn't believe in that she couldn't see how hard that previous play-by-play actually made me blush with that mental image. I was brought back from my thoughts as I heard a beautiful laugh on the other end. A true, rare 'real' Haruno laugh.

"I quite like this new Hachiman…" She says in a fit of giggles. Ah, I'm playing right into her hands again.

"I really should go now. You have my time, we can continue the 'game' tomorrow." I say quickly, wrapping up the call.

"Yes, yes. See you tomorrow, Hikigaya-kun." She said, ending the conversation. I heard the click. Closing my phone, I released one of the deepest sighs of my life. I think even the woman beside me stared at me as I did so.

As far as conversations with that woman go, that was probably a 7/10 with the way I handled it. Still, a part of me felt relieved. Relieved that despite everything, Yukinoshita Haruno and my relationship had not changed. It still could, however.

It surprised me even more that I would ever feel relief, even after stressing over and over since I met her that I hated the woman. But I guess my life lately has put a broader perspective on hate. I knew something for sure now. No matter how much I ever told myself I hated Yukinoshita Haruno….

It would never compare to how much Yukinoshita Yukino hated me.

* * *

 **A/N: And, voila! I don't know what to make of it yet. Either everyone likes it or it doesn't fly at all. I hope you enjoyed reading this first chapter. I've always wanted to do something with these two characters. I think this is an interesting take. The 'Third year' fics are among the best we have for Oregairu. I hope I can meet those standards with this one.**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hey guys. I'm back already. Surprising yes? I find myself really motivated with this one. Truly feels like I'm going to enjoy it. And of course, thanks to you all for the great support, I can feel the excitement from you all, he he.**

 **For this chapter, the conversation and pacing style is somewhat resemblant of Bakemonogatari, one of my favorite series of all time.**

 **Also there was one Guest reviewer who said I didn't mention Isshiki. I don't have to cover everyone the first chapter you knoooooow?**

 **Let me know what you think.** **Also, all hail LINE BREAKING!**

 **Story Start!**

* * *

I finally reached my home while the sun had reached it's 'orange' state. I had just completed my conversation with Haruno about a meeting time. I still found myself thinking back to arguments I left back years ago. About what was 'genuine', and if such a thing ever existed.

The short answer was: It didn't. When I began this story, I mentioned how something could transform and emulate what was 'genuine'. But that was a case of circular reasoning. If something that had to transform and could only emulate what was 'genuine' then it was never genuine to begin with because it was never the real thing, thus refuting the emulation in the first place. It's a fallacy of the world we live in. But right now I was talking about why these philosophical conversations re-entered my head.

The short answer to that is: Yukinoshita Haruno. When it came to that particular person, that argument came to me as simple as breathing. The questions and theories between fake and genuine naturally surfaced when faced against her. They were woven deep into that personality, and you could not pass under that mask of her's whatsoever if you chose to ignore it. The only other option, is to blind yourself, or should I say, avert your eyes from the truth of her image. Something that will get you nowhere.

This was something Hayama Hayato had done all his life. And it didn't get him anywhere either.

So no, in the conventional sense, the arguments are not resurfacing. The arguments may coincide with what I used to think of society, but with Haruno, the variables aren't the same at all. They are singular to her case. Her mask exceeds that of society's expectations. If it were Hayama it would be a different thing. A guy who sacrificed his friend since childhood for the sake of pleasing everyone. A guy who used a girl who fell in love with him to fend off others with the same goal. A guy who will please everyone in the short run but leave you so hurt in the long run.

I've never met a more selfish bastard than him.

But perhaps I'm getting sidetracked. Hayama Hayato's actions means nothing to me, and his disability to change things makes him almost pitiful.

It almost makes me laugh knowing that Miura Yumiko hates him. I guess times really have changed.

* * *

 **A Few Minutes Later**

I decided to tuck away my thoughts for the time being. There really was no use on mulling on about them. I walked into my empty house. Or, should I say, my newer empty house. My family had moved into a much larger 6 bedroom house for reasons I can't imagine, in a more upscale neighborhood of the city. I guess all that hard work they put into their jobs pays off. Pays off really well in fact, when considering the new furniture and finish to the interiors. All with it's own garden and driveway. Doesn't hurt to be frivolous after all this time.

Then again, what's the use if it's going to be empty for most of the day? Well I guess that isn't fair to say.

"Meow." said a voice as he leapt out of the kitchen and jumped onto one of the sofas. Duly noting my lowly presence, Kamakura walked up to me. I knelt down and patted his head for a minute before going to the kitchen to get the lord of the house over here some food. In the end I decided to help myself to some instant ramen as well, duly ignoring changing out of my uniform to turn on the TV mounted to the wall. This house was still too fancy compared to what I was used to. I let myself mind run loose. Naturally, I found myself falling asleep.

* * *

 **Dreamscape**

My eyes opened as I found myself facing sunlight on my left side. It took me a second to figure out where I was. I looked down, and found myself on a chair. I looked to my left, and found a table next to me. As well as two chairs on the other end of the table, that were empty. Well I guess it's obvious enough where I was now.

I was completely alone in the Service Clubroom, and looking outside the window looked like time itself had stopped. Everything was still, frozen, and the evening sunlight failed to give out any warmth.

I see. I've been taken here after all the recalling of events I did today, huh? I believe this is the phenomenon we know as 'lucid dreaming'. Dreaming with a conscience in place, where the one in whose mind the dream is taking place has full control over his actions and the play by play of the dream.

The power to play god. What a breathtaking thought. Perhaps this is why people actively sought out and actively tried different methods to reach a state of lucid dreaming. A story still progressed in the dream, but in the end you decided the turn of events when called to do so. I wonder what the point of being alone in a lucid dream is, though.

"Well if that's your definition of lucid dreaming, then I guess you would be mistaken, Hikigaya-kun." started a voice. My eyes widened as I did a 180 with my heel to face the newcomer, who sat in Yukinoshita's spot. But that spot was taken, by an older woman, with short hair and more… Mature features. You know who I'm talking about.

It was Yukinoshita Haruno.

"Seriously, Hikigaya-kun. I make a dramatic entry into your dreams, and even then the only thing you can think of are my breasts? Just how much do you want my body?" She asked with a smile on her face. However the smile was something the real Haruno would never put on. I guess that sets her apart as 'Dream Haruno'. Still…

"How did you know-"

"Oh come now, this is your dream. I am just a mental image of your own thoughts. Your thoughts are my thoughts, and my thoughts are thoughts you wouldn't think of consciously." she said, keeping that new smile I had never seen before. She was still sitting in what would be the usual Yukinoshita's spot.

I took my own seat in the Clubroom, or at least what used to be my seat.

"My own brain chooses to give me my innermost thoughts in the form of the devil incarnate?" I ask, playing along with this strange situation.

"Ah, even if I am just you, there are still things that cut deep you knoooow?" she says. Great. Now she's stealing catchphrases from Isshiki. Just how much crap is lifelessly floating around my head?

"No, there aren't." I say, going by her own reasoning. Or is it mine in this case?

"Hm, I suppose not. Your thoughts, after all." she says, laughing.

"Why did you say this wasn't a lucid dream then?" I ask tenaciously. Is the floor going to erupt below my feet with an explosion and kill me in my dream?

"I said it wasn't a lucid dream in your sense of the word, not that it wasn't one." she says.

"And that being-" I was interrupted as a weight came on my knees. True, I felt wait but it was still as light as a feather. Arms found their way around my neck.

Haruno was straddling me. Her legs locked at my hips, and our breaths were mixing.

"I meant that even in your own lucid dreams, I can't let you assume control, _Hachiman."_ She says in that dreamy smooth vixen voice as she whispered into my ear. I was in shock. I quickly grabbed her shoulders and pushed her off with all my force. She almost went flying in her trajectory towards the wall. By time I blinked though, she was no longer there. I turned around at the sound of a laugh.

She was sitting in Yuigahama's chair now.

"Oh my, that's no way to treat a woman now is it?" She says, putting on that strange smile again. I say nothing and glare at her.

"Do you really hate me that much, Hachiman? Enough that even in this dreamscape of fantasies, you are nothing but disgusted at my advances towards you?" My eyes widened. I guess even my own subconscious likes to say things cryptically. My expression returns to normal, and I sigh.

"No. That's not it. It's the fact I enjoyed it that got to me. It's my ever growing fear of giving into you." I said while standing and staring directly into 'Dream Haruno's' eyes.

"Very well done. I expected nothing less. But I guess that's enough musing for now. I'm afraid we must bring this to an end."

"What do you mean?" I was lost again as when I blinked, Haruno was in my face again.

"You reached the conclusion a while ago. I guess I'll live up to your expectations. You are gonna leave this room dying." My eyes widened. But I wasn't scared.

"Why?" I ask, as a final question to my subconscious.

"Why you ask? For the symbolism, of course." She says with a smile, and my eyes close. I feel wind hitting my face as I open my eyes again. The floor of the Service club blew up. And I was falling to a ground below. I braced myself for impact.

And then my mind went blank.

 **End Dream**

* * *

I awoke in a shock, causing Kamakura, who had settled in next to me to join me in my slumber to also jump. He audibly grumbled before walking to find another place to plant himself until dinner time. Lazy beast. Finding my bearings, I realized the lights to the living room were on, to compensate for the disappearing sunlight. The television was turned off, and a frying noise was emitting from the kitchen. Picking myself up I slowly made my way to the kitchen, where I was greeted by the sight of a middle aged woman wearing an apron and humming as she went about her cooking work. If you ignored the laptop on the island table in the middle of the room, that is.

"Ah, look who decided to wake up. Good morning, Hachi-kun." I was greeted by my mother. Hikigaya Kiyomi was her name. A beautiful, confident middle-aged women holding one of the most prestigious jobs in Japan as the head of her department, a title shared only by 3 other women in Japan in the same line of work. She was as formidable as it would be with her job.

Still, she managed to meet the high standard she set for herself as my mother and caregiver. I have nothing but respect for my mother. She found herself almost beating into my father the importance of being there for your children last year, therefore the change in house, with the reason being that 'A house was more than just a practical location to sleep'. That and the thorough insistence that we eat together on Thursday and Friday of every week.

I never thought I would feel sorry for my Father.

"Hm. Welcome back, Kaa-san." I say shortly, walking over to the cabinets and pulling out a glass. My throat was parched.

"Well, Hachi-kun? How goes school? And your new club, of course." She questioned absentmindedly, her attention on the cooking at this point. It was almost therapeutic to her, taking care of housework.

"School is as good as it's ever going to be. Club is fine too. I trust you saw the email from Chiba University."

"Hikigaya Hachiman, try to impose that distant tone in front of me again and I'll make you regret it." she says. Oh shit, not the full name. Please.

"Sorry." I say quietly. I didn't actually mean to do that. I think it hits her a lot more than it does to me. If my tone with my mother is no different than my tone with anyone else, what does that make her? In my entire life, the one person I truly feel guilty for causing pain would be my mother. Because somehow…

I know she thinks this is her fault. Her fault of neglect turning me into this. Even if not directly, she treated her absence as a catalyst for my transformation into a reclusive society-hating monster. And now, I was transforming again.

"Well, to answer your question, yes I did see it. I'm proud of you Hachi-kun." Oh thank god, she's back to that nickname. She took the time to look at me, as if observing what I had grown into. I can already see the glint in her eyes. It's where Komachi gets it from.

"You know, Hachi-kun, it's still amazing how good that uniform makes you look." she says. What a weird thing to say.

"It's almost strange that…" Oh. I see what she meant.

"That I don't have a girlfriend." Her smirk finally reached her face. I thought as much. In the end, when it came to this kind of thing my mother was probably the worst person in the world. It's almost after hearing about Komachi's school life it reminds her of her own, giving her a somewhat… repulsive ego boost.

"There's no such thing in my life. And I would tell you last if there was." I say stoically as a joke, walking away. My mother had a comical look on her face, crying animated tears. I knew that look. It didn't work on me anymore.

"Nooo! Come back, Hachi-kun! Please talk- Oh no, the food!"

What the hell?! Act your age woman!

Hm. Before I left, I walked back into the kitchen. My mother did know about some of this stuff.

"Kaa-san." I ask for her attention.

"Yes?" she asks back, the comic moment over, now with a more normal look on her face.

"What is the symbolism of dying in your dreams?" I ask. She probably already knew what would bring me to ask such a thing.

"Ah, taking an interested in my bedtime reading, huh? Well, death in dreams can come in many forms, and these many forms of death have different meanings behind them. A gruesome death in your dream is nothing but unadulterated fear. A fear for your life. A gentle death or a quick one rather, marks closure, or the end of something. Falling to your death symbolizes your insecurities and fears that sneak around your head. But in almost all cases…"

"It denotes change. It denotes the end of one thing, and the beginning of another. Beginning anew."

"A new beginning, huh?" I wondered myself, if a change like that could happen in one's life.

* * *

 **The Next Day, Evening**

Friday evening, that is dinner at home with my family, and most of today went by in a flash. I was quite awestruck and in a daze the whole time. It turned out my dream with Haruno had gotten to me more than I thought. It had turned into one of those dreams that just took over your thoughts for the next day.

I pieced together most of what my mind was thinking of. Change? Probably. Insecurities? Also likely. Not to say that either of those were bad things. My insecurities made me happy. I was growing cocky, I was growing arrogant in my ability to read people. The insecurity meant that there was still a part of my brain that realized that I was in over my head most of the time. Because if I failed to accept that in time, then I really wouldn't be able to walk away unscathed from the events that I will be involved with.

Other half was the change. On what basis had my mind decided change was coming? And why did it decide to put that forward in the form of Yukinoshita Haruno? Perhaps I was getting too into it. My musings stopped as I had reached my destination. I stared at the bright lights emanating from underneath the café. I walked up the steps to enter the restaurant. I even recognized the waitress that saw me to my table, and it's a safe bet she did as well. I ordered my coffee and stared at the clock they had which was conveniently right in front of me. I stared outside. It seemed that love was in the air. This wasn't an uncommon phenomenon at this time of year. After a good few months since the start of a new year for high school students, it's bound to produce these results. It's the perfect time after a reshuffle and meeting new classmates that people decide to start escaping the 'friendzone' and start establishing relationships. That's why this time of year you would find the most couples going around.

It's almost laughable how one third of those relationships will either strain or die out completely by next month. Once again, my borderline sociopathic thoughts were stopped. The bell to the door rang, and another figure entered the comparatively empty café. There, she walked in wearing her usual attire. A formal white shirt-type blouse with her almost signature cardigan and skirt. Her eyes danced around before landing on me, and, dare I say it, they gained a life to them when they saw me. I noticed the usual things. Her black hair, with the ends dyed purple to match her eyes.

Like I had described several times before, nothing could hold a candle to the sheer beauty put forward by Yukinoshita Haruno.

It almost surprises me that she chooses to associate, with someone like me.

 **Chapter End.**

* * *

 **A/N: Well, what did you guys think? Please let me know. The next chapter will have a lot more plot going for it, and not to mention, 'the deal.' Thanks again for all your support.**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: What the hell am I doing? I'm trying to pump one or two more out while I am still free. Or three. I thank you again for the reception of the story and the awesome support you have for my writing.**

 **Haruno is a bit hard to write. The way she works is, since she has such a thick mask in the show and LN, the 'true' personality and feelings are always up to the mind of the writer, and it may not coincide with what other people may have impressions of. I apologize if I had made her Out Of Character at some point, but it is all detrimental to the story I would say.**

 **Story Start!**

* * *

What was the nature of my relationship with the demon woman, Yukinoshita Haruno? What did I feel for her, and why was I obligated to come to this location? I could have just as easily left it all behind. I could have quite literally shut myself off from everyone and anything. I could have spent my third year in solitude, like I so desperately desired. Walked away from everything to do with Yukinoshita Yukino.

Yet I didn't. I was still here, and I was very much active in school, something that was definitely irking my former clubmates. I felt like I no longer had the opening of feigning ignorance. I was giving into my thoughts with the sheer emotion of anger. It was true after all, when I said that my leaving the Service Club had given my a resolution of my own.

I was not going to live my life upon societies rules.

Going back to Haruno. What did I feel for her? That remained to be seen. Haruno was an active catalyst during my time in the Service Club. She made it a point to bend me towards her own desires, and through our various meetings like this, often had me guess and conclude what it was she wanted from me. For the first time, it was her beliefs that I could bring the change to Yukinoshita Yukino that she desired. But a few months later, it had reached the other possible conclusion. Yukinoshita had lost her own identity, and started to rely on me. Haruno didn't wait for my permission to take her away from me and Yuigahama to stop her. I fought. And I fought hard to get her back. I even made a deal with Haruno that she couldn't refuse to get back Yukinoshita.

That was the first and only time I had ever managed to best Haruno. And if you ask me, this shitty story should have ended right then and there.

But here we find ourselves.

That being said, perhaps it was was stupid of idea of mine, that I decided to walk into this meeting blind. Not knowing anything about what was going on, why she wanted to meet and what she expected of me after. I knew that all of those questions had an answer.

Yes, it was a terribly stupid idea of mine to do this. I stared. I stared like a dumbstruck idiot. The phenomenon where if you ever dream of a girl, you find yourself more attracted to her, in most cases for a short period of time. This was exactly what was happening to me now.

This is literally the worst time in my life to have a meeting with this woman.

"Can't look away, Hikigaya-kun?" She says, putting on a frosty mask of a smile. Ah, this is more like the Haruno I remember. At the very least, it helped me regain my bearings.

"Nothing like that." I said, quietly, creating a tense silence between us, not aided by her smile in the slightest. The waitress saved my life from what was surely certain death, as she came and diffused the atmosphere by taking Haruno's order. We fell into a lull for a minute before she decided to speak first. I was here to listen to what she had to say anyway.

"Well? How are things?" Hm, she was throwing idle chatter at me? Sorry, but I'm not in the mood.

"You're going to have to be a bit more specific than that." I say, trying to bring myself into a position of equality before the goddess before me. I was too reckless with that comment. Needless to say…

It blew up in my face. For a second, those eyes grew frostier than I had ever seen the other Yukinoshita daughter make them.

"Fine then, Hikigaya-kun. You wanted to play this game, then let's play. Tell me, how are things in that new club? How are things after leaving the two that wanted to get rid of you? How are things after my sister? The one who hates you, of course. Sorry, am I still not being specific enough?" She threw back, with fire that was invisible to anyone else around us.

It hurt of course. Every single one jabbed me in some shape or form. I tried to forget. I tried very, very hard to forget all of that. But even I of all people couldn't ever alienate myself from the feeling, that is pure hurt. Yet, I let none of it show. Instead I fought it. I fought the pain with all my might.

I smiled. No, I smirked. I smirked like the arrogant bastard I was.

"Now that's more like it." She said, the eyes regaining their life, and a new smile finding its way onto the face of my companion.

"But I suppose hate isn't really the appropriate word. Envy. Detest. Abhor. Perhaps these words are more resemblant of what my dearest sister feels." she says. I see. Or rather I didn't see anything. I peeked. I leaned over the fence to truly grasp the threads of what she was saying. None of it was obvious. The only reason I saw anything was because my eyes were looking for it. Maybe it was even pretentious of me to think about it. Maybe the only reason I did see it was because it was what I wanted to see.

This woman, Yukinoshita Haruno, could it possibly be… That she felt guilty? Like somehow, this was all her fault? That was as unlikely as me getting hit by a car. Wait. That's a bad analogy. But I couldn't envision her seeing anything as _her_ fault, and even if it may have been her fault, why would she ever feel guilt over it? That was not the Haruno I knew. All the consequences of her actions were irrelevant to her, unless it directly affected the outcomes of what she wanted to achieve. Unless of course, you consider the highly unlikely situation, that my involvement was something she did want as an end result.

"And why isn't hate the appropriate word?" Slowly but surely, I was pushing out the lingering emotions from my situation with Yukinoshita. I decided that I'll look at things as how they are. My feelings were irrelevant to Yukinoshita Yukino's.

"Well, hate would mean that it was your doing that led her to feel such things. Hate, much like it's counterpart love, doesn't come from simple existence and association. Like love, hate bears its own form of intimacy. A very strong one. It takes a lot of intimacy to bring someone to hate." She says, quietly sipping the drink in front of her. She was almost on the brink of losing her smile. To be honest, that scared me more than when she was smiling.

"I see. And envy, detest, abhor. They're all emotions that don't require that. They are emotions that can surface from just glancing at a person. It could take something as simple as one single word to trigger feelings like that." I reply. Was that her underlying message? That Yukinoshita and I, were never intimate to begin with? That we weren't close enough for her to feel something like that?

I can't say I disagree with her. But enough waiting. It's time to get on with this. This is what you've all been waiting for. Who am I talking to?

* * *

"That's enough about me. My feelings right now are irrelevant. What I felt back then is what mattered, and you already know all of that. Which forces me to be frank at this point in time. What do you want?" I say, in a more cryptic tone. It scared me. It was a tone I couldn't recognize, even if it was my own.

"Hm, I see more and more of that 'New' Hikigaya coming out every time." She says, her smile going back into full swing. Instead of continuing, she quickly finishes her drink, still somehow managing to keep that air of elegance around her as she performed such a hasty action.

"Let's take a walk, shall we?" she says getting up. I give her a short glare and oblige wordlessly anyway. As we walk outside. Now nearing 6:30 the sunlight was beginning to fade as lights lit up the streets of Chiba. Naturally, completely naturally, her arms locked with one of mine. This was something that was insisted upon every time I ever met this person, and it didn't even phase me at this point. Until of course, I felt her breasts being pushed into my arms ever so slightly. We still wasted no time in our conversation.

"So, what is this about?" I say again, my cryptic voice from earlier transforming into one of annoyance.

"My my, aren't we impatient, Hikigaya-kun?" She says again. Now I was really getting pissed off. Before what was going to be an undoubtedly profane reply, she saved me from the trouble.

"Alright. Tell me. What do you know about Yukino-chan?" she asked me. It was a classic play of conversation with her. Instead of giving me the information up front, she gets me thinking, asking leading questions much like a preschool teacher. Upon answering the questions and reaching the answer, the kid feels gratified, and well, smart. When half the work is done for him.

It makes my life easier though.

"What do you mean?" I ask. It was still too vague.

"My bad. Being more specific, What do you know about Yukino-chan as she is now? As she is after you saw the things she did to you. What she is capable of?" She asks again as we walk into a nearby park. The sunlight was nearly gone. We were in a moment of twilight.

"She's dangerous. She's a horrible person, who realized that she couldn't do anything to help anyone. She couldn't deal with that. I became her antagonist. A sight of her failures. I was everything she was not. My… as you call it, 'ability' was what bred her hate of me. In the end, as I am now, she hates me for that, just the way she hates you. All those remarks. All those 'playful' insults. It was a horrible manifestation for her opinion of me. I'm her opposition. She dedicated those last three months in the Service Club purely to prove her own superiority."

"Ah, of course. But what makes you think Yukino-chan hates me?" she asks, in a daring tone, and a smile.

There was no humor in any of this.

"What do you think I am? Even I, admittedly the inferior here am smart enough to know that your last few interactions with her couldn't possibly have been the 'ideal sister relationship'." I reply.

She laughs. And my blood boils.

"Listen Haruno, tell me, what the hell do you want?! You know me well enough to know I want nothing to do with this. I want to be left alone, and live my short high school remainder in peace. This hate garnered from Yukino, the hate that I garnered in response. There's nothing to fix that. Even Isshiki was smart enough to leave all of this behind. And Yuigahama? Well, I think her own old social group has a lot more colorful words to describe her now, more than me. Everything has changed, and there's no hope. Nothing can fix this situation. I don't need friends anymore, and I never did."

"What makes you think I want to fix it? You think I'm that naive?" She was up close in my face now, closely staring at my dead eyes, which probably looked more dead than in their entire existence.

"No, but you have an unchecked god complex that makes you think that you can." I reply.

"And what about you? What about that unchecked arrogance and naivety that makes you think that you can just walk away from this? The way I'm looking at it, Hikigaya-kun, you could use friends. Now more than ever." She shoots back.

"Things aren't going to change again. You should know that, after all you're no different than me-" My eyes widened. I knew what she meant. I knew what she wanted. I saw the look on her face. Her eyes, while sparkling and lively didn't match, the dreadful look on her face.

That wasn't her usual smile. While to others it may have looked the same, to me, it's almost as if she was giving a psychopathic grin. All in my head of course.

"I see. So that's what this is about."

"Hm. I knew you would get there eventually." she says, her smile lulling into a more normal one, at least in my head.

"It wouldn't have struck me otherwise. I didn't think you'd be taking this direction." I answer back.

"Well, at this point I don't have much of a choice. To be completely honest, I'm getting a bit desperate myself. It's hard, not trusting anyone, you know?" she says with a sigh, walking up to and sitting on a bench. I followed and placed myself down next to her. I was an idiot for even considering this plan.

"I have had no choice, but to bring you into this. In _my_ war, waging against the new and improved Yukino-chan." she says.

This is what all this was for. For the Yukinoshita Yukino that had gone out of hand, and now posed a threat to her sister. Haruno probably tried to deal with the situation herself, but it seemed that Yukino had become more vicious than she could imagine. After all, she and Hayama hadn't doing nothing since I left the Service Club.

"All this sprung up because of you. Because of your failure as her older sister. Your failure to accept either of them, least of all acknowledging them." I say. It wasn't an accusation. It was a matter of fact. Perhaps it was possible in that moment, that there was hurt felt in those eyes, in that smile.

She rested her head on my shoulder. I blushed, but threw my hormones aside.

"Ah, don't try to pin this on me now. You babied Yukino-chan. You treated her like anyone else would, and that's where you failed. I thought you would be a challenge to her. I thought you of all people wouldn't treat her the same way every other damned boy would. To be fair, at first you were nothing but a sacrifice, a simple checkpoint, in my eyes, to get Yukino-chan to where I wanted to see her." She said. It wasn't far from what I always knew, but I couldn't blame her for it.

She didn't need my help. It would aid her greatly, yes, but she didn't need it. Her being here was more an offer of protection against Yukino. Yukino, in her 'reign of terror' undoubtedly had a plan for me. She could use a request in one final act against me. She could destroy my standing with the student body. Not ruin it. Destroy it. And in the worst case scenario, she could possibly even destroy my future. My University prospects, everything. Why Haruno would do such a thing however… I didn't know.

"Then why am I here?" I ask honestly. I found myself wanting to know the answer to this question. Her head didn't move from my shoulder.

"I won't lie. It appears caring about you was a development I hadn't foreseen." she said in an almost wistful tone, followed by a giggle.

Yukinoshita Haruno cares for me? Cares for me, the social pariah and deadbeat loner #1, Hikigaya Hachiman? I didn't know what to make of that. I stayed silent.

"Well then what's your answer? Will you Hikigaya-kun, make a deal with what you believe to be the devil incarnate herself?" She asked. I stay silent again. She speaks again.

"I can't really promise you much. You'll have to be more sly than before. The requests and actions I tell you to do may not exactly tie in with your moral beliefs." She said again. Her eyes not looking at me expectantly.

I had made my decision.

"What do you need me to do?" I ask simply. Needless to say, I've never seen Haruno try that hard to cover up a look of surprise. I think her eyes almost widened. Almost. Then she smiled. That evil smile was back.

I couldn't help but smile as well. Neither of us spoke. She was probably expecting an explanation.

"You're the best shot I have. You're the only one left. We both know what's going to happen if I really do walk away. Or at least try to." I said. It was time for things to change. If I could only do as much as partake in what had become a war between these sisters, then so be it. I had chosen my side.

"Ah, damn. And here I thought you'd finally confess to Onee-chan." She said with a fake pout.

"Don't worry though, Hikigaya-otouto, The Onee-san route will never fade! It's always open!" She said laughing. It was the same laugh I had heard yesterday. A melodious laugh pulling heartstrings in men.

"Yes, yes, whatever. Now, what do you need me to do?" I say getting up from the bench and facing her. She lifts up her hand, as if asking me to take it and help her up. I oblige and we began our walk outside the park.

"Right now, you need to keep it contained to your high school. Speaking of which, I'm not going to be enough for that. You need to amass your own team. Someone helpful, who'll be able to deal with the student body should Yukino-chan try to attack you on that end. Sorry, but looks like you're up first on the list. Who knows, even Hayato may try something. Like I said, it wouldn't be easy." She says as we reach the edge of the park, and exit on to the road.

"Do you happen to know anyone like that, Hikigaya-kun?"

"Well… Yes. And what then?"

"Then just let things play out and deal with them. Deal with them until Yukino-chan decides to raise the stakes." She says, with me nodding in response. We both knew it was the end of our little get together at this point. She called in her driver to our location.

"Well Hikigaya-kun, I didn't get the chance to ask you before. How did it go with Chiba University?" Damn. I forgot that she went there as well.

"I'm most likely to win my scholarship." I said, leaning on one of the steel railings of a bike rack.

"That's good to hear… Looks like we'll be together for real, soon enough. Although I don't think any of the events of our two years together in college with ever amount to what we are going to face before your finals…. " Of all the emotions I have ever seen on this woman's face, I could not simply begin to decipher this one.

"Although, it's a curious thing. After all these years fighting alone, a companion would be most interesting." She says, with a more familiar face of hers. That was true enough. Me and Haruno… A deadly companionship. If I said she could burn all she knew to the ground, how far would she go with me at her side?

"Haruno…" I started.

"Yes?"

"This fight… With you and me, where will it leave Yukino?" I asked. I could fight for this. I was willing to fight for this. But I couldn't reduce myself to the level of Yukinoshita Yukino. But what I feared most was enjoying it. Enjoying this turmoil, and finally giving into Yukinoshita's challenge.

"Hm, where will it lead indeed?" She said cryptically. Her driver pulled up. Without another word, without even another look in the eye, Haruno walked up to me.

She kissed me on the cheek. And she walked into the car and drove away.

What the hell woman?! Don't play with my emotions like that!

Jokes aside internally, I sighed audibly at what was to come. Gather friends, she says. Easier said than done. But that lack of response from Haruno spooked me more than I would like.

Either way, I knew what I had to do for the moment. And I think I had an idea on how to do it.

A certain Fire-Queen owed me a favor, after all.

* * *

 **A/N: And here we are! End of Chapter 3 folks! I know some of you are averse to my pacing, but since I'm writing so much so fast I guess it compensates. Chapter 4 will cover a lot more, and it will cover a lot of events and plot points.**

 **I do hope you guys enjoyed more conversations and less monologuing this time though.  
**

 **Until next time. Which is very soon. Seriously, I'm already writing Chapter 4.**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: As promised, back with another chapter of A New Start. I'm really glad to see you guys so pumped for this. Well then, let's get on with it.**

 **Story Start!**

* * *

The rest of the weekend faded all other thoughts from my mind. After my meeting with Haruno I had grown even more quiet, or at least that's what was noted by my family. I was thinking about a lot of things, a lot of different factors involved with my decision to side with her. But there was another issue springing from my thinking. There were no emotions to my thoughts. I had no regard for feelings of my own. I thought of other's reactions and feelings merely to gain a sense of what would happen, but not once in my entire two days of thinking had I thought about what I wanted. I only knew what I needed to do to survive.

This is how it should have been from the very beginning. It's more generic line than what I'm used to, but expectations will bring forward nothing but disappointment. I know I'm in no position to have 'wants' in this situation. Now, I'm merely hiding behind the dark wings of Yukinoshita Haruno, nothing less then her pawn in battle. I had no value myself. I wasn't the protagonist anymore, if I ever was one to begin with.

I decided to put aside these more depressing analogies of my situation when I 'woke up' on Monday morning. As in, I never slept to begin with. Still, droning around my house I somehow managed to complete my morning routine as I left the door with a can of Maxx in my hand and a slice of toast. I was running late, and Komachi had already left. I would barely make it in time at my current rate. But that's fine, because I know I won't exactly be alone. In fact, you could even say I planned for it.

As expected, when I reached a now more familiar intersection on the road, I could hear hurried footsteps catching up behind me. After hearing the sound nearing me for a second or two, I was prompted to look around as I was tapped on the shoulder by most likely the running person. I turned around, gazing into green eyes and blonde hair. A face I could call familiar now.

"Hikio." She said, gasping for breath. She probably ran trying to catch up to me. Before I could reply the light on our cross turned green and I walked along with her just a step behind me.

"Yo." I finally said, lamely as usual, when we reached the other end of the road and continued our stroll to school. I finally glanced to my side to get a good look at her as she was now.

The Fire-Queen of Sobu, a creature of beauty that I shared a class with this year. By logic of my own name scheme, you could consider her to be the arch-nemesis of Yukino, who I dubbed to be the Ice-Queen. Last year, that could have probably applied, seeing as Miura literally attacked her at one point, but that's not the case anymore. They lost their status as equals. And that's because Miura Yumiko is simply too much nicer than Yukinoshita Yukino as she was now.

After the 'incident' with her own social circle, Ebina was the only one Miura had left, being her best friend. Surprisingly, even Tobe was someone Miura still spoke to, though very occasionally, and it was probably because of Ebina anyway. As for the rest of them, I can leave it to imagination what happened between them. I knew the story of Miura and Hayama, because she told me, but I still didn't know what caused the rift of Yuigahama and her or the rest of Yuigahama's old clique. My assumption had always been it had to do with taking sides with Yukinoshita, but I couldn't be sure.

Still, even after a heartbreak and hating Hayama, losing most of her friends and by extension, some of her social standing, she couldn't be happier. In her mind, she was free from the shackles of her binding social contract of everything fake and unreal that she faced because of Hayama Hayato. She had enough friendships to call true. She didn't need to be on a phone to fill in the gaps of empty conversation.

Speaking of which, that's exactly what Miura was doing the whole time I spent monologuing. She had pulled out her phone and tapped away at lightning speeds. Oi, does that mean I'm empty conversation?

"If you're going to keep up like that, don't expect me to jump in and save you if you get hit by a truck at the next cross." I said, cracking open my can of Maxx Coffee and sipping down the now lukewarm liquid. A godsend for days where sleep escaped me. Nothing better than this. In response, she glared at me like the normally did, but obliged anyway, quickly typing away what I can assume to be a quick 'goodbye' and closing the phone.

"So, how was your weekend?" she asked after a moment of silence between us. Shit. I didn't know the opposite of that was engaging in conversation.

"Nothing special." I said, and I could visibly see her forming a tick mark on her forehead. We walked a few more steps before I finally felt the glare that was very not-so-subtly directed at me. I turned to see her looking at me expectantly. Oh, right.

"How was your weekend?" I asked tiredly, taking another sip of my coffee.

"I didn't do anything." she said plainly.

"Then why the hell did you make me ask?!" I asked irately, gaining tick marks of my own. Miura looked like she was having the time of her life after seeing my reaction. It was an intended joke, but Miura answered the question anyway.

"It's something friends do when they see each other after a while, Hikio." She said, almost condescendingly. Don't try preaching to me, it won't work.

"I don't have friends." I shot back, continuing on my walk.

"Sure, sure. Whatever you say." She said, letting out a tired sigh. Hey, stop looking at me like I need pity! I visibly sulked, gulping a large amount of the Maxx this time. We were almost at school now. I finished the rest of my drink and threw it away.

"Miura. I need to ask you something." I say, with a more serious tone, and hers immediately follows suit, as if knowing what I had to talk about.

"What is it?" she asks, gaining a cold look in her eyes. Miura Yumiko's own hate was something to be feared.

"I'm going to call upon that 'favor' you owe me." her eyes softened, realizing that the conversation wasn't what she originally thought.

"I'll tell you the rest after school."

"Hey, don't just assume I don't have plans!" she said, crossing her arms.

"Ebina isn't even coming today. You have no plans." I said. And how did I know that? Well Miura told me herself last week. Why was I spending time with Miura last week? I had no idea.

"Hm. Alright." she said, as we finally entered the gates to school. We ended up arriving a bit earlier, giving us ample time to reach class before I made my way to the new seat, which was, in fact, next to Miura's at the back of the class. I promptly fell asleep.

* * *

As the classes went on I had more time to think about my situation. Why did the Fire-Queen of Sobu owe me a favor, you might ask? That story goes back to the end of the second year, when things were already starting to wear thin between me and the Service Club. Miura Yumiko had approached us with one last request- A request to finally confess to Hayama Hayato and break through the ties that were holding back her clique of friends. She had noticed the smaller details, like how Ebina refused to talk about herself, refusing that sort of intimacy with anyone. She wanted her group to grow closer, so she approached the Service Club.

She was shot down. She was torn apart once more, this time with Yuigahama disagreeing with Miura's idea, and Yukinoshita ridiculing her and calling it 'humorous'. Miura had left the room with a sad look on her face, mainly directed at Yuigahama.

Naturally, having the 'savior complex' that I had, I once again chose to approach Miura alone. I had told her that I would help her. Naturally, she felt bad about having me betray my 'friends' like that. Thus, unlike a request, this time I approached her under the pretense that she would owe me for all the help and advice that I gave her. Not as a member of the Service Club, but simply for my own benefit. And so, we proceeded with our plans together.

And we all saw how that turned out. The only consolation was that Miura didn't regret what happened. It didn't make it any easier for me. A screw-up is still a screw-up. And that time, it was my ignorance that led to those results. It never mattered to me how grateful Miura was in the end, the fact had remained that I had completely failed the original request. While in my mind her situation now was the best for her 'true' friendships, it was never her wish in the first place. No matter how happy she was, it wasn't what she originally wanted. It was as if I forced my own idealism of what should happen into the equation.

And I never felt more sorry. Until now, I actually had no plans of making use of that favor.

* * *

After classes had ended, I quickly got up from my desk and made my way to the Literature Club. My constant thinking and lack of sleep had led to a painful headache in the back of my head and I needed that tea. Miura was going to play Tennis today anyway, so it meant we would meet after 4:30 anyway.

 **Literature Clubroom**

I opened the door quickly and walked in, receiving greetings from the usual members and the one or two that only stopped by a few times a week.

"Ah, Good afternoon, Hikigaya-senpai!" said a cheerful Yoshino Miyabi, who was at the kettle near the sink. I of course took note of her greeting as well. 'Good afternoon'? Finally a generation I found hope for!

"Yo." Of course, I myself took no shame in being a degenerate for those kinds of things. I sat down on one of the desks, nowadays rather instinctively going to sit across wherever Yoshino was sitting. She made a point to do the same whenever I came here first, so the least I could do was oblige to that. Instead of taking out my book like I normally would, however, today I plopped my bag on the table and simply buried my face into it. Yoshino gave a worried laugh at my actions and gave me my cup of tea.

"It's still perfect, kouhai-san." I said, mumbling to myself at this point, gaining some form of relief from the tea. She heard it anyway and smiled.

"Thanks Senpai. What got you like this in the first place? I bet you stayed up all night playing eroge." Ah, back to deprecating comments about me? Well, that's something I can never truly escape. At least she was amused.

Time for me to have some fun though.

"You know Yoshino…" I said with a smooth tone. She visibly stiffened up, with a scared look in her eyes.

"When I play those eroge as you say… I have a very bad habit." She grew even more scared as I continued on, but she made the mistake of humoring me anyway.

"A-and… What would that be?" she asked, very meekly.

"Well… I can't help but always go… for the kouhai route." Her face went completely red, and if this were a cartoon she would have had steam blowing out of her ears.

"E-eh? W-what are you implying S-senpai?! My heart can't-"

"Just kidding." I said, in an emotionless voice and immediately started reading my book. I wonder what she was gonna say if I hadn't ended it there. Funnily enough, Yoshino isn't the type of girl that would shoot me down like Isshiki would do in this situation.

After a while I finally glanced up at her for a second. She was still sulking and fuming with a pout on her face. It took all the restraint I had not to smile. It was a good feeling.

The Literature Club isn't really that bad. To an extent, I would even say I'm happy to be its president, even if only on paper.

* * *

I finally made my way out of the special building after saying my goodbyes to the club. Now being 4:30, or relatively close to that time, I started walking towards the tennis courts. Within a matter of minutes, I had reached my destination. From the looks of it, Miura had just finished up her match, just putting her blazer back on. After seeing me, she quickly muttered her goodbyes to her club mates and joined me in our walk.

 **A Few Minutes Later**

Miura and I were now in a park, with her sitting on a bench probably exhausted. After watching her I had walked up to a vending machine and bought her some no-name peach flavored iced tea.

"So? What was it you wanted from me?" She asked, sipping my drink.

"It's best if I explain from the start. I spoke to Yukinoshita Haruno on Saturday." I said, quickly shutting up Miura.

"Yukinoshita's sister?" She asked, as if repeating my statement, but I answered her anyway.

"Yes."

"Hayama once told me that the two of you were 'close, in a strange way.' to put it in his words." she said. To an extent, that could be true if you looked at it from one way. Then again, it could have just been another lie for the sake of ensuring Miura's loyalty when she met her. I couldn't tell if he actually believed that.

"Maybe, I wouldn't really know about that. Anyway, she and her sister are why I asked you here." I took a moment to pause after that sentence, so that Miura would get the message. She has heard enough to make a decision. She can choose to walk away right now and just not get involved in this. She still has the luxury, and I can't take it away from her.

"Go on." she said, looking at me with conviction in her eyes. I see. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't grateful.

"Haruno told me Yukinoshita intends to act against her, and everyone really. She said that Yukinoshita was going to go on a rampage, starting right from the school, challenging her sister to be the 'final goal' of her actions." she stayed silent.

"One of those goals along the way… In order to complete them, at least, she would need to get over her first challenge: Me." Miura's eyes widened at that. I think that one sentence was enough to tell her what she needed know. About why I quit the Service Club.

"And you need my 'help', most likely by joining you and Haruno-san to fight back?"

"Something like that… More like, I need someone with some influence on the student social body."

"And Hayama?" she asked tenaciously.

"What _about_ Hayama?" I asked back.

"Will he be involved against you? Is he going to help Yukinoshita?"

"He already is. It's why he joined the Service Club unofficially." Miura's eyes widened once again.

"How do you know that?"

"Because they already started. Kawaguchi, an underclassman first-year of my club, she was approached by Hayama, and he probably used that riajuu suave into telling her that she needed the Service Club's help for one reason or another. She went to the Service Clubroom on Thursday with a request."

"Again, how do you know that?" Miura looked at me with a fake look of disgust. Aha, impressed, were you not?

"Yoshino Miyabi is a reliable source." I told her simply. I feel bad about teasing her after all her help.

"That second year… I'm impressed Hikio, you see through everything, don't you?"

"Not everything. In fact, sometimes, I miss everything." I said, still referring to the time when I screwed up Miura's request. My eyes were downcast.

"Hikio." I looked up to stare at her.

"I'm helping you. I'm going to be on your side." she said, in a calm voice, showing off the confidence in her decision.

"Are you sure you wanna play by my rules? There's a fair bit of manipulation in my first plan alone. Also, this might exceed the limits of something like a favor. You might want to think overnight or-"

"I've made up my mind. Also… The favor still stands. I still owe you. This is something different. This is my personal vendetta against Hayama." She said with fire in her eyes. Fire that scared the hell out of me.

Hayama is so screwed.

"So, what's our plan?" she asked.

"It's apples to apples. It's a retaliation process. Whatever they try to do with me, we respond in kind, but we never go first. By taking in and talking to my younger club members, they're likely trying to spread mistrust and uneasiness by filling out the members. Of course, this time, we have a headstart, because it's a slower process. The plan of attack is simple. Make their own club life impossible to deal with."

* * *

After that, Miura and I walked to the edge of the park, and back home to the common intersection where we parted ways. The sun was setting, leaving it's classic orange tint in the skies.

"The plan starts tomorrow then?" Asked Yumiko as she now stood before me.

"Yeah. I just need to talk to Isshiki to confirm it."

"Alright. Until tomorrow, then." She said, beginning to walk away, and she would have had I not called not a second after.

"Wait! Miura… I… Thank you." I said, looking away. Miura had turned around and looked at me once more. There was no smile, there was no blush in the look she gave me. I was never expecting one. But, there was a warmth, a certain warmth I can't express, in her eyes. She didn't directly respond to my words.

"You know, Hikio, you said something that pissed me off this morning." She said, still maintaining that cold demeanor of hers.

"W-what?" I finally stuttered, going back to my second year self when I used to fumble every time I was on the receiving end of one of her glares.

"I'm your friend. Don't you ever forget it." She said, turning around in a huff and walking away.

' _I don't have friends'_ my words from this morning rang in my head. I see. To someone like Miura, that was probably the biggest insult of all.

Despite everything, Miura Yumiko was a kind person.

* * *

 **A/N: And there it is! I decided to flesh out more of the high school situation with this chapter, as well as introducing Yumiko. Don't worry the plan will definitely be shown next chapter, and Haruno will make a return as well for it. Apologies for the lack of Haruno in this chapter, I'll make it up to you guys next time.**

 **A new 'My Teen Romantic Comedy was Different' chapter will be out on Tuesday or Wednesday for you people as well. Welp, time to sleep, school is in 6 hours. Rip.**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Hey guys, back with more of A New Start for you guys. Seems like I'm repeating myself each chapter, but a massive thanks for your continued support. On another note, I might, as in MIGHT, write a chapter for A Different Circumstance next week. We'll see how it goes.**

 **Apologies for the upload delay. I fell extremely ill for two weeks, and I've spent the last good while catching up on the life that I missed.**

 **Story Start!**

* * *

 **Hachiman First-Person POV**

Mistrust leads to betrayal. Betrayal is often combined with the term deceit. And deceit, was an action that I was most intimately familiar with. I spent my last few months in the Service Club in that way as well. During that time, I was thrown about. I was given false information, and I faced rejection of ideas for the sake of throwing me off whatever case we had at the moment. Under normal circumstances, I wouldn't have noticed these things until months later, which is of course what Yukinoshita thinks happened.

I didn't. I knew from the start. I knew from the first time she tried to do it, that I was being lied to. That the things that she spouted from her mouth were utter lies. The girl that never lies, lied to me. She lied to me for months, in hope that it would change something in herself. But no, that isn't what happened.

If you ask me, the Ice Queen was as useless as she always was, now even more so without me to line her up in the right direction.

Her refusal to acknowledge me as her 'friend' had sprung from the same reasons. Her overdependence, her reliance on me, all were deters that proved to both of us that we could never acknowledge each other as friends. That had led us down a horrible path that I no longer want to remember. Until I was forced to.

This is because Yukinoshita and Yuigahama were in the Literature Clubroom at this very moment.

They were in _my_ clubroom. Talking to the very same student, Kawaguchi, regarding her request. Of course, I wasn't in there yet. I could hear everything from the door to the room. Questioning whether I should enter or not.

" _Of course, it's all up to what you want to do. Either you can work towards confronting him, or better yet, even confront her on her feelings of this matter."_ came the cool and collected icy voice of Yukinoshita from within the clubroom. They were talking about the boy in her year that Kawaguchi liked. The 'her' that they mentioned was Kawaguchi's best friend, who, _conveniently,_ happened to be absent to defend herself.

I can imagine the 'feelings' this best friend was having were her own feelings for the same boy that Kawaguchi liked.

I, or should I say, Yoshino, knew for a fact that this wasn't true. Yukinoshita was just playing on some hormonal girls' feelings at this point.

Ah, how the mighty have fallen. It made my blood boil. But since, of course, they made a point of being here for my appearance, I might as well live up to their expectations. With that resolution, and anger bubbling inside of me, I found my resolve. With a steeled, cold look on my face I opened the door to the Literature Clubroom in a swift move, directing my eyes to the scene, where all eyes had also found there way to me.

Yukinoshita was refraining from smirking at my presence, Yuigahama looked at me with clear annoyance, even though she fully expected and waited for me to be here. What the hell is that logic? Though who knows, maybe even that thought process is beyond her. Then there was Kawaguchi, who looked like she was about to break into tears at any given moment. Playing the 'comforting senpai' role, was Hayama Hayato, the one who brought the younger girl into this mess in the first place.

And finally, there was Yoshino, who was defending Kawaguchi's absent best friend, trying to convince said girl that her best friend was not in love with the same guy as her. And she did not look happy.

No, in fact in that given moment she looked to be absolutely _livid_.

"How can you even think of all that after all the help and advice she gave you Kawaguchi?!" exclaimed Yoshino as she stood to defend their mutual friend.

"Why not? In this situation the better option is to question everything. Given advice, this friend of hers could just as easily been throwing her off from what the boy might actually want." said Yukinoshita.

Oh. Now that's rich coming from Yukinoshita.

"Isn't that the unspoken trust of friendship? You should most definitely not question things in a way that will lead to meaningless and baseless assumptions like this." said Yoshino in defence.

"Unspoken trust of friendship? Sentiment of that caliber in this situation just doesn't apply. It's naive to assume that." said Yukinoshita back, with annoyance and a sneer etched on to her face.

"Oh, please, I wouldn't expect someone like you to know about something like that anyway." said Yoshino back. Oh boy…

Silence graced the room for a second. Yukinoshita stood up from her seat silently, as if ready to pounce on Yoshino much like Miura did to her. Of course, Yukinoshita wouldn't go for a physical attack. No, she does her jabs with words.

"And how you do quantify your 'trust' or 'friendship'? Perhaps a strange form of relationship with that _thing_ over there you call Senpai?"

Another Silence. And in a swift motion, Yoshino was about to let hell break loose as she almost leapt towards Yukinoshita with what was no less than intent to kill.

She was stopped and held in place by the faker himself, Hayama.

"I think you should calm down Yoshino-san." He said, trying to preserve what was left of this situation. Yukinoshita was about to speak again in glee at her win, if she hadn't been stopped by me.

"That's enough." I said, sharply enough for everyone to hear me. I quietly walked towards where Yoshino was being held in place and got her out of Hayama's grasp, where she stood silently in front of me with her head hung low.

"Get out." I said, with so much of an edge to my own voice that I could barely even recognize it.

"Hikigaya-" started Yukinoshita, ready to battle me again.

" _I said. Get the hell. Out. Of my Clubroom."_ I said with an anger beyond all compare. I'd like to think everyone cowered in fear at this point.

"Hikitani-kun, I think we shouldn't act rashly-"

"My name is Hikigaya, you bastard. Now get out." I said, looking him straight in the eye. With a silent affirmation in our stare, he quickly moved past me with the two Service Club members and promptly left the clubroom.

With them gone, everyone in the Clubroom turned their eyes to me. I shrugged them off, and went to sit down at my usual spot. Yoshino lingered in her place for a movement, before moving to the seat across from me, as she always did.

"It doesn't bother you?" she asks, pensively.

"Yes it does. Why do you think I stopped it?" I asked offhandedly, pulling out my iPod.

"You stopped it for me, not for yourself." She said, looking at me accusingly.

I had nothing to say to that. But…. Perhaps…?

"Hey, Yoshino."

"Yes, Senpai?" she said, looking away from the book she was pretending to read to meet my gaze.

"Do you want to go out?"

In retrospect, I could have worded that better.

* * *

 **After Club**

I walked out of the School Special Building as I always did, but this time, I was being closely followed by a smaller, figure, who was running up shortly to catch up to my pace. She walked in step beside me, allowing me to give her a sideways glance. She said nothing, not a word. In my time knowing Yoshino Miyabi, as respectful as the kouhai next to me was, when it was just the two of us, she could never find it in herself to shut up about all the mindless gossip that drones around her year.

And now, she had gone completely silent. It made me angry beyond all belief. For the first time, I found nothing, and _nothing,_ but foul thoughts in my mind as to how to wipe that disgusting smirk off the Ice-Bitch, and how to break every bone in that blond bastard's body.

None of those thoughts would do anything to help her current state. In her mindless walk beside me, I did the only thing I could think of. And knowing me, you probably already know that means me going into my Onii-chan instinct mode. Naturally, seeing her distant expression, I could do nothing more than raise my hand to pat her head.

The reaction was immediate.

She froze up in place, but said nothing as I continued to run my hand atop her head. There was a pregnant pause in the air for a second, as if she was debating how to deal with what I just did, before she let out a deep breath that was nothing short of a sigh and relaxed under my touch. I stopped a few moments later, and we wordlessly went on our way to a nearby cafe. I almost thought I imagined the small smile she held on her face for the rest of our trip.

Sometimes, actions did in fact do a great deal more than words ever could.

* * *

 **The Same Night, Hikigaya Household**

 _*Ping*_ was the sound that buzzed out of my pocket as I was lazing on my bed with my beloved Vita-chan. Pressing pause on the RPG, I reached for my phone to get a message from the ever so great Yukinoshita Haruno herself. Jumping into the IM app, before I could even read the message my phone began to ring.

It was Haruno again.

"Hello?" I spoke picking up the phone and sitting up straight on the bed.

"Hello, there, Hikigaya-kun. Do what do I owe the pleasure?"

"You called me." I said in a disinterested voice as I got up and looked out the window.

"Right. I was debating whether to call or message, but I guess I ended up doing both." she said, laughing. But there was a hint of genuinity in the laugh. She was probably actually happy about something for once.

"What got you in such a good mood?" I asked, going straight for it.

"Sharp as ever, Hikigaya-kun. I just wanted to let you know Yukino-chan came home from school today, and she did _not_ look happy." she said, as I could definitely picture the smile she had on her face.

"I can only assume you were behind that." she continued.

"Hm." I said in a tone of agreement.

"Well? Aren't you going to tell me what happened?" she asked playfully.

"Well, it just so happened that-" I started.

"No wait. Nevermind. Let's do this after school tomorrow. I'll pick you up." she suggests/decides almost instantly.

"And if Yukinoshita sees us?"

"Why do you think I'm coming to pick you up?"

* * *

 **A/N: I decided to release this shorter chapter since I really didn't want to compile the next chapter into this one. Next chapter will be the usual 4-5k words.**


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